The artistic director of Russia's Bolshoi ballet has relived the moment acid was thrown in his face, almost blinding him, at the trial of a dancer accused of plotting the attack.

Sergei Filin told the court he was left writhing in agony on the ground following the attack outside his home in January.

"I immediately felt very strong pain. My eyes dimmed. I have never felt such pain in my life. I wouldn't like to speak of how I was falling, crawling in the dirt," Filin said.

"I don't forgive anybody for what happened to me. That is very important," Filin said, after describing the late-night assault in which a masked attacker threw acid from a jar in his face as he was returning home from the Bolshoi.

Investigators allege Bolshoi dancer Pavel Dmitrichenk had a conflict with Filin over the distribution of roles and planned to have the former ballet star permanently maimed.

Dmitrichenko, who has been under pre-trial arrest since March, last week pleaded not guilty, saying he had never intended for Filin to be injured so severely.

The man accused of carrying out the attack, former convict Yuri Zarutsky, said he acted alone.

The third defendant, Andrei Lipatov, is accused of driving Zarutsky to and from the scene and also pleaded not guilty.

All three face up to 12 years in jail if convicted. But, under Russian law, the maximum term could be lower if the judge ruled they were not acting as a group.

Dramatic confrontation in courtroom

Filin, 43, has demanded damages for emotional suffering of 3 million roubles ($97,200) and 508,000 roubles ($16,400) to compensate for material losses.

"The life of all the people around me changed. I lost my eyes; I cannot see my children," he said, his voice breaking, when the judge asked him to describe the impact of the attack.